M-LISADA performers. Photo | Courtesy
The Uganda National Cultural Centre (UNCC) aka National Theatre has for years not only entertained music lovers through The Jam Session but also greatly contributed to the music careers of the music stars whose music you enjoy today.
After a big break, the live music show returns tonight at the UNCC partnered with Music, Life Skills, and Destitution Alleviation (M-LISADA), a non-government organisation that uses music to rescue children and young adults from destitute.
Unlike the previous sessions where the floor was for everyone, The Jam Session returns with a different setup according to Edwin Mukalazi, the production manager at the UNCC.
“The set-up is going to be different. We are going to do scenery design with more lights. For Tonight, we have selected performers already but coming Monday, we shall register people who are interested in performing and they will be coming here for rehearsals first because we want to up the quality,” he said
He further explained that Forty minutes will be given to musicians who lack the skill for live performances. This however will not be happening at every session.
“The purpose is for such talents to learn to perform live therefore the forty-minute sessions will happen for a short time.
Mr Daniel Ssettaba, the lead consultant of M-LISADA explained that they chose the partnership with UNCC purposely to revive the discipline of music by calling back the session’s old audiences as they also attract the new audiences and also create more partnerships.
“We would like to rebuild the discipline of music and give it a more kind of hype. We are not doing anything new; rather we are using a new team and a new generation of young people with a passion for music who have already achieved so many things with music. Some of them are doctors, engineers and nurses,” he explained
Mr Ssettaba also believes that the program with the Uganda National Cultural Centre is not only about reviving the long-standing music program of singing and enjoying music but also a platform where people with a common goal can meet, recap about life, solve problems and talk about who they are.
“When people meet with a common goal, they can plan, dream and help each other because so much can happen in a week. We believe that every new week we will meet, there will be a new story to tell,” he said
In tonight’s session, the band from M-LISADA will be playing alongside the selected performers.